He's Mysterious Alright

 

THE MYSTERIOUS MR. WONG-1934-The sinister Mr. Wong (Bela Lugosi in Asian makeup and Hungarian accent) is searching for the 12 coins of Confucius. Everyone suspects a Tong war but annoying, wisecracking reporter Jason Barton (Wallace Ford; FREAKS (1932)) thinks otherwise. When one his henchmen fails, Wong has him thrown in a basement with rats (not shown). By day, Wong poses as Li See, a herbalist. He treats his niece Moonflower (Lotus Long) and her attendant pretty badly and she says he's mad. Jason & and girlfriend Peg (Arline Judge) team up to figure out the mystery when Jason gets a hold of the coin. 

Corny cliché talk and sometimes racist dialogue. Also with Richard Loo. Directed in fast fashion by William Nigh who ironically later did the Boris Karloff series of Mr. Wong detective films. It's based on the short story “The Strange Adventure of the 12 Coins of Confucius” (1927) by once popular mystery writer Harry Stephen Keeler. This was Lugosi's first film for the “poverty row” studio Monogram.

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Another Bad Future

 

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THE NEW BARBARIANS (aka Warriors of the Wasteland)-1983-In 2019 AD “the nuclear holocaust is over” but bad film making in Italy still goes on. A group of fancy men called The Templars led by One (George East-man), roam the land killing survivors. A loner named Scorpion (Timothy Brent aka Giancarlo Prete) saves a woman, Alma (Anna Kanakis) from the gang. When some of them trap Scorpion, he's saved by bow and arrow using Nadir (Fred Williamson), another loner. Later, the trio meet The Sect, a tribe that believes in God led by Father Moses (Venantino Venantini; also in CANNIBAL FEROX (1981)). When Scorpion is captured by The Templars, Nadir once again saves him. They team up with a little kid mechanic (Giovanni Frezza from THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETARY (1981)) to save The Sect from the sadistic One. 

Mindless ROAD WARRIOR inspired junk by director/co-screenwriter Enzo G. Castellari (ESCAPE FROM THE BRONX the same year; also with Prete). Bad guy Eastman was also in Castellari's 1990: THE BRONX WARRIORS (1982) along with the former football playing Williamson.

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Bad Blood

 

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BLOOD FEAST-2016-American Fuad Ramses (Robert Rusler from the "Babylon 5" TV show) and his wife Louise (Caroline Williams; THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 2) run a diner in France, trying to put their daughter (Sophie Monk) through college. She gets mad at them because they are serving old meat. Fuad who works a night shift at a museum, stops taking his medication. One night, Egyptian Queen Ishtar (Sadie Katz) says she wants him for her lover. Through Professor Hershell (Herschell Gordon Lewis!) Fuad learns that a guy named Tammuz once killed 14 children and served them to their parents. Thus, Ishtar became his lover. Suddenly Fuad has an altar to Ishtar in his basement and is going to recreate the feast for her. 

Garbage production with terrible acting and a stupid script. Director Michael Walz needs to reevaluate his career choices.

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“You're damaged merchandise and this is a fire sale!"

 

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SCUM OF THE EARTH!-1963-Photographer Harmon Johnson (Thomas Wood aka Harry Kerwin) deals in porn. He watches dispassionately while his dumb assistant Ajax (Craig Maudslay Jr.) abuses model Sandy (Sandra Sinclair). The head of the ring is a slimy guy named Lang (Lawrence J. Aberwood) who forces Sandy to “recruit” new girls. She gets innocent college hopeful Kim (Louise Downe) to pose for Johnson. After a few shots, suddenly she's posing naked and being abused by Larry (Mal Arnold; Fuad Ramses in BLOOD FEAST), another of Lang's sleaze bag henchman. Later, Lang gives Kim a lecture where the camera has a close up of his mouth while he spats insults. At another shoot, Ajax attacks Kim and Johnson beats him to death with a baseball bat. Sandy stands in for Kim (who they sent away) and stands by Johnson, providing him with a witness that it was self-defense. The cops are alerted and Lang shoots Larry. The police chase Lang to a beach where Lang hits the water. Now trapped, Lang shoots himself. After Kim and Johnson say their goodbyes, the voice of director Herschel Gordon Lewis is heard warning against the scum of the earth. 

This black and white exploitation film was made just a few weeks after Lewis' infamous BLOOD FEAST (which lead actress Downe wrote the screenplay for). It's pretty cheap looking and reminded me of an Ed Wood movie (Wood made THE SINISTER URGE about a porn racket in 1960).

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The Original Invaders

 

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INVADERS FROM MARS-1953-Little David (Jimmy Hunt) who's interested in astronomy sees a UFO land near his house at night. When his scientist dad (Leif Erickson) goes to investigate, he disappears. David's mom (Hillary Brooke) calls the police. Two cops investigate (one is Douglas Kennedy) and seem to fall into a hole made in the sand. Later dad shows up, now a cold, mean zombie with a strange wound on the back of his head. After dad hits David, the cops show up also zombified. Later David sees his young neighbor fall in one of the sand holes. She comes back mesmerized and sets her house on fire. David goes to the chief of police (Bert Freed) but he's already been taken over and has Sgt. Finley (Walter Sande) put him in detention. Finley calls in Dr. Pat Blake (Helena Carter, who retired from acting after this) to examine David. She seems concerned. Mom comes to get David but it's obvious she's now “one of them”. Fortunately, Dr. Blake rescues him and takes him to see Dr. Kelston (Arthur Franz), an astronomer who believes David saw Martian invaders. Kelston contacts Col. Fielding (Morris Ankrum) and Capt. Roth (Milburn Stone). The taken over people start sabotaging things. When Pat & David are captured, we finally see the aliens, tall green guys with bulging eyes who obey a weird golden head (Luce Potter) who speaks telepathically. 

I won't reveal the “shock ending” although everyone probably knows it already! Also with (mostly all uncredited) William Phipps, Fay Baker, Peter Brocco, Richard Deacon, John Eldredge, Tod Karns, Robert Shayne, Frank Wilcox and Lock Martin. 

This science fiction film released by 20^th Century-Fox was filmed in SuperCineColor, a three-color process invented in 1948 but only used till around 1954. Despite a fairly low budget, director John Cameron Menzies uses unusual camera angles and almost surreal set pieces.

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I Am The Goblin King

 

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LABYRINTH-1986-A lonely girl Sarah (Jennifer Connelly), who fantasizes about goblins and such wishes her baby brother would be kidnapped by goblins. Her wish comes true and The Goblin King (David Bowie) tells her she has 13 hours to rescue him from the labyrinth. She meets lots of wacky Muppets, some who seem to be talking Monty Python inspired dialogue (Terry Jones wrote the original script). 

Bowie sings a song backed by his Muppet horde. And there's other musical numbers and a chaotic battle. In the end Sara must find a way to rescue little bro from the MC Escher inspired labyrinth. 

This imaginative musical fantasy is a combination of music, puppets and sfx directed by Muppets creator Jim Henson who had their own TV show from 1976-1981. Connelly was in Dario Argento's PHENOMENA the year before this.

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Superstition, Perhaps. Baloney, Perhaps Not

(alarmy)

 

THE BLACK CAT-1934-Peter Allison (David Manners) and his wife Joan (Jacqueline Wells aka Julie Bishop) are on their way to Vichgrad, must share their honeymoon rail card with Dr. Vitus Werdeghast (Bela Lugosi) who's on a mission of vengeance after having spent 15 years in a POW camp. When the talkative driver (Herman Bing) smashes up their cab, the newlyweds are forced to seek shelter in the art deco home of the sinister Hjalmar Poelzig (Boris Karloff), the very man Werdeghast (who has a fear of cats) has come to see. Joan is injured in the crash. Poelzig is a traitor who has built his domain on a killing field. Besides that, he stole Werdeghast's' wife and daughter. Unfortunately, both are now dead. Poelzig even has her preserved dead body. But Karin, the daughter is now actually Poelzig's lover/wife/prisoner. Still, he seems to lust for Joan. When the couple wants to leave, they are prevented by Werdeghast's servant (Harry Cording). Later, Joan meets Karin and Poelzig punishes her. Poelzig is a devil worshiper who plans to have a black mass with Joan as the special guest sacrifice. Werdeghast rescues Joan and tells him his daughter is still alive. With the help of his servant Werdeghast overcomes Poelzig and skins him alive. But when he tries to help Joan, dummy Peter mortally shoots him. Husband and wife escape as Werdeghast blows up the castle. 

This sometimes-disturbing pre-code, Universal horror film shows director Edgar Ulmer at his finest. He seems to be pushing the envelope with some of the situations that are only implied. This is also one of Karloff's best villainous roles with Lugosi giving a good performance, but his demise is kind of a letdown (couldn't he or Karloff had lived at the end of at least one of their movies?!). 

John Carradine has a small role as a satanic organist. Some of the other uncredited cult members include King Baggott, Symona Boniface (from 3 Stooges shorts), Michael Mark and Andy Devine.

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